Page:An Exposition of the Old and New Testament (1828) vol 4.djvu/999



This is the shortest of all the books of the Old Testament, the least of those tribes; and yet it is not to be passed by, or thought meanly of, for this penny has Casar's image and superscription upon it; it is stamped with a divine authority. There may appear much of God in a short sermon, in a little book; and much good may be done by it; mullum in fiarvo — much in a little. Mr. Norris says, " If angels were to write books, we should have few folios;" that may be very precious, which is not voluminous. This book is entitled, The Vision of Obadiah. Who this Obadiah was, does not appear from any other scripture; some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that Obadiali that was steward to Ahab's household; (1 Kings xviii. 3.) and if so, he that hid and fed the prophets, had indeed a prophet's reward, when he was himself made a firofihet. But that is a conjecture which has no ground. This Obadiah, it is probable, was of a later date; some think cotemporary with Hosea, Joel, and Amos; others think he lived about the time of the destruction of Jerusalem, when the children of Edom so barbarously triumphed in that destruction. However, wliat he ivrote was what he saw; it is his vision; probably, there was much more, which he was divinely inspired to sfieak, but this is all he was inspired to virile; and all he writes is concerning Edom. It is a foolish fancy of some of the Jews, that because he prophesies only concerning Edom, he was himself an Edomite by birth, but a proselyte to the Jewish religion: other prophets prophesied against Edom, and some of them seem to have borrowed from him in their predictions against Edom, as Jer. xlix. 7. 8cc. Ezek. xxv. 12. &c. Out of the mouth of these two or three witnesses every word will be established.

This book is wholly concerning Edom; a nation nearly allied^ and near adjoining to Israel, and yet an enemy to the seed of Jacob, inherfling the enmity of their father Esau to Jacob. Now here we have, after the preface, V. 1. I. Threatenings against Edom, 1. That their pride should be humbled, v. 2. .4. 2. That their wealth should be plundered, t. 5.. 7. 3. That their wisdom should be infatuated, v. 8, 9. 4. That their spiteful conduct to- ward God's Israel should be avensed, v. 10.. 16. II. Gracious promises to Israel; that they shall be restored and reformed, and shall be victorious over the Edomiles, and become masters of their land and the lands of their cither neighbours, (v. 17. .20.) and that the kingdom of the Messiah shall be set up by the bringing in of the great salvation, v. 21.

HE vision of Obadiah. Thus saith JL the Lord God concerning Edom, VVe have heard a rumour from the Lord, and an ambassador is sent among the hea- Ihen, Arise ye, and let us rise up against her Vol. IV.— 6 R in battle. 2. Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised. 3. The pride of thy heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground ? 4. Though thou exalt thyself ^.s the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord. 5. If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut otf !) would they not have stolen till they had enough ? if the grape-gatherers came to thee, would they not leave some grapes? 6. How are the things of Esau searched out ! hoiv are his hidden things